Analysis of medical practices used as indicators in the fourth basic plan for the promotion of cancer control in Japan.

Abstract

Background: In the Fourth Basic Plan to Promote Cancer Control Programs, the number of medical practices using claims data from the National Database (NDB) is measured as a clinical indicator. This study aimed to clarify the characteristics of patients who received care as an indicator of medical practices using more manageable claims data.

Methods: We used the claims data collected by the DeSC Healthcare, Inc., and included patients diagnosed with cancer between 2017 and 2022 in this study. We compared age and cancer type distributions between the study population and population estimates, as well as cancer-specific medical practices with the NDB open data. We also described the number of medical practices, patients, and the percentage of patients receiving care by age and region. The percentage of female patients who underwent treatment was also calculated.

Results: A total of 1 251 850 patients was included. The distribution of cancer types was similar to the estimated prevalence, and the number of medical practices resembled the NDB open data; however, the age distribution was skewed. The highest median number of medical procedures per patient was six for specialized palliative care, whereas the others were one medical procedure per patient. The percentage of patients receiving care according to age was classified into three groups: increased with age, decreased with age, and peaked in their 40s. The percentage of patients receiving care varied by region depending on the type of medical practice. Of the patients who received care for lymphedema, 93.8% were female.

Conclusion: The background information of cancer patients who received designated care may help interpret the total number of medical practices used as clinical indicators in cancer control programs.